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Old 11-30-2012, 01:21 AM   #1
Larry-P
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PLACEMENT OF JACKS

Our unit is parked on a gravel pad. Front jacks are not overly extended. Rear stablizers the same.
I placed 2 additional jacks directly in front of the wheels and now the monty shakes worse than ever.
What is the logic to be used when placing additional jacks? Must I always use four additional jacks, 1 in front & 1 behind the wheels?
I would think that 6 points of contact with the jacks would be great but I guess not.
Any help and/or explaination is appreciated.
Thanks, Larry P
 
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Old 11-30-2012, 01:27 AM   #2
bncinwv
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When we are parked for extended periods of time, I use four screw type jacks (two on the frame in front of the axles and two on the frame in the rear of the axles). I just snug them up to the frame, not enough to lift anything more than a fraction of an inch. The purpose of the jacks is to eliminate the bounce from the axle suspension system by isolating it. In addition we use chocks between the tires. I would guess this eliminates about 80-90% of the "bounce". I would think that just having the jacks in front of the axles would not "isolate" the suspension system, which I believe is the primary contributor to the bouncing.
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Old 11-30-2012, 01:48 AM   #3
racerjoe
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It sounds like that you have the center jacks too tight taking some weight off of the others, as bingo has said, just snug the jack up to the frame. I can't see how that would make it worse
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Old 11-30-2012, 02:40 AM   #4
H. John Kohl
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by Larry-P

Our unit is parked on a gravel pad. Front jacks are not overly extended. Rear stablizers the same.
I placed 2 additional jacks directly in front of the wheels and now the monty shakes worse than ever.
What is the logic to be used when placing additional jacks? Must I always use four additional jacks, 1 in front & 1 behind the wheels?
I would think that 6 points of contact with the jacks would be great but I guess not.
Any help and/or explanation is appreciated.
Thanks, Larry P
I have two scissor jacks permanently mounted just in front of the tires. My leveling process follows.[list_to_fix][*]Level side to side.[*]Raise the nose to unhook[*]Lower the center jacks just in front of the wheels[*]Level fore and aft putting more weight on the center jacks and taking a little spring bounce out[*]drop the rear stabilizers[*]Set the JT stabilizers[*]Tweak the JTs and done.[*]I do have Scissors chocks on the wheels

The JTs seemed to take about 90% of the shake out and the center jacks took care of another 8% or so.
After a month on a gravel or sod pad I have to re-set them because of settling.
I hope this helps.
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Old 11-30-2012, 03:37 AM   #5
pineranch
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What John does with the exception of the JT's since the JT fairy hasn't stopped by my house YET.
Mike
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Old 11-30-2012, 03:46 AM   #6
DQDick
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Before we added level up we used a version of what Bingo is doing, plus we had a tripod jack under the king pin. We felt we needed the tripod jack since our washer/dryer is in the front cap and would wag the rest of the trailer at times.
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Old 11-30-2012, 05:22 AM   #7
Art-n-Marge
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The problem with any vertically positioned stabilizer is that they do a good job preventing movement from up and down directions but they do NOT prevent any side to side movement as well as we'd like. That's where a JT system or any other side to side preventative is needed. You can have all the vertical jacks you want but as you move through the rig and cause ANY side to side movement, you'll feel it.

The shortcoming of a tripod which has some side-to-side prevention since the legs splay in several directions is that it only works at the front cap and the remaining back part of the trailer will move side to side. If you want to stop all movement, then a JT, BAL or SteadyFast system is in order. I've been in these rigs and they are almost rock solid, or at least way better than my rig that has only vertical support (and a tripod).
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Old 11-30-2012, 07:09 AM   #8
CamillaMichael
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We purchased a set of four stack jacks at WalMart (less than $40, I think)and place a pair in front of the forward wheels and a pair behind the back wheels...we snug them in tight, without lifting the trailer. It has worked well for us. Given the height of the Montana, we have had to use some concrete blocks for a base to lift the jacks.
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Old 11-30-2012, 02:30 PM   #9
Rondo
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Mike- Maybe Santa will tip off the JT fairy about them this year! I went the cheaper way and went to CW and got mine! I think John hit the nail on the head and he does it the same as we all do but HE'S GOT THE CENTER JACKS ON HIS!
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Old 11-30-2012, 02:31 PM   #10
PackerFan
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I had the same type of idea as Larry-P and I placed 2 12 ton bottle jacks, 1 on each side, just in front of the wheels. It didn't seem to ease the bouncing as much as I though it would. I may have lifted the trailer with the bottle jacks just a little to much so I'll try lowering them a little and try it again. If that doesn't work I might try the 4 screw jacks and put one in front and one behind the wheels.

Guess I may have to look into the angle supports also like JT's or SteadyFast.
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Old 12-01-2012, 03:54 AM   #11
thekennys
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John
a couple of ?
I have two scissor jacks permanently mounted just in front of the tires. My leveling process follows.

Level side to side.
Raise the nose to unhook
Lower the center jacks just in front of the wheels
Level fore and aft putting more weight on the center jacks and taking a little spring bounce out
drop the rear stabilizers
Set the JT stabilizers
Tweak the JTs and done.
I do have Scissors chocks on the wheels

why sat jacks at wheels before leveling front to back,
I've done scissor chock on wheels then, front to back, landing gear, scissor jack in front of wheels,then rear stabilizers.

the scissor jacks i have are heavy so i've been afraid to mount them on frame because of weight and 4 holes needed in c bean frame .
mikey

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Old 12-01-2012, 06:26 AM   #12
H. John Kohl
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by thekennys

John
a couple of ?
I have two scissor jacks permanently mounted just in front of the tires. My leveling process follows.

Level side to side.
Raise the nose to unhook
Lower the center jacks just in front of the wheels
Level fore and aft putting more weight on the center jacks and taking a little spring bounce out
drop the rear stabilizers
Set the JT stabilizers
Tweak the JTs and done.
I do have Scissors chocks on the wheels

why sat jacks at wheels before leveling front to back,
I've done scissor chock on wheels then, front to back, landing gear, scissor jack in front of wheels,then rear stabilizers.

the scissor jacks i have are heavy so i've been afraid to mount them on frame because of weight and 4 holes needed in c bean frame .
mikey

Mikey,
I used self taping bolts on the I beam.
I can not lift with these jacks but putting steady pressure on them and they are rated at 7K pounds. I feel I am putting a 1K pounds or so on them when I put them down and then lower the trailer on them. They become the fulcrum point for the center of the trailer. This does take a little pressure off the springs/suspension system. That 1K is more than I could put if I tried to crank on them.
My intention is to lesson spring bounce.

I hope this helps.
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Old 12-01-2012, 12:36 PM   #13
thekennys
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im moving tue and i'll try setting up that way
thanks
mikey
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Old 12-02-2012, 06:25 AM   #14
Art-n-Marge
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One thing I forgot to ask about... your OP states you are on gravel. Are you using something else like pieces of planking under each jack foot to help create a larger foot pad on the gravel? I learned this trick from others that's to minimize more of the side to side movement caused by jack stands, the pad needs to be as large as it can to create more friction than what you'll get with the smaller feet of a jack stand.

I use Lynx levelers. MY BIL uses homemade 18" planks of wood, but I think something more is needed than what is provided with the smaller feet. I use them even on solid ground, too. It's just part of my set up process.
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Old 12-04-2012, 12:58 AM   #15
Larry-P
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Thanks for all the info. I'll try the tips mentioned.

Larry P
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Old 12-04-2012, 11:56 AM   #16
jmi
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I give, what does JT stand for?
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Old 12-04-2012, 12:41 PM   #17
H. John Kohl
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JT stands for JT Stabalizers now owned by Lippert.
Here is a link of one of the providers.
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Old 12-11-2012, 02:37 PM   #18
7.3Ford
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I made four stands like picture below and put them under the front and back feet. That way I don't have the feet up so far to level, and the come in handy when the ground is not level second picture.




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Old 12-12-2012, 01:05 AM   #19
DonandBonnie
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We have the automatic leveling system in our Big Sky. We are currently parked on a gravel pad. After a week and a half in the same spot we've noticed that the vibrations are more pronounced as we move inside the rig. Our weather has been close to freezing overnight and lots of rain. I'm thinking that the ground has shifted or settled somewhat under the jacks. My project for this morning is to reset the jacks. I'm going to replace the blocks that we are sitting on with larger ones to spread the load. We'll let you know whether this dampens the vibrations.
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Old 12-12-2012, 04:25 AM   #20
DonandBonnie
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Our Big Sky has been re-leveled and is now sitting on some 2x10's x 2' under the blocking that we were already using. This cut the motion of the trailer by about 75%. We are now sitting on top of a hill with the ground all around like a sponge from all of the rain that we've had. I doubt that I can stop any further movement until the ground firms up. When we raised the jacks it was evident that a couple were sinking in the gravel pad. This is another thing to add to our check list - check the level about once a week when parked on other than a concrete pad.

Just thinking about "what if" as I write this. I suspect that it would have been possible for the trailer to sink to the point that it would have been difficult to hitch up. The front left jack sunk about an inch and a half in less than two weeks and the other two left jacks were starting to sink as well. What if we sat all winter and failed to check the level. Maybe nothing! Maybe disaster!
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